


Guarding his sleep

by Dunderklumpen



Category: Emily Owens M.D.
Genre: F/M, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-20
Updated: 2012-12-20
Packaged: 2017-11-21 17:05:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/600103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dunderklumpen/pseuds/Dunderklumpen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She guards his sleep.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Guarding his sleep

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILERS for episode 105 "Emily and the tell-tale heart". I wrote it after I saw the episode. The scene in which Micah's mom says he's still her "Micah-mouse" and cuddles him is teh cutest ever!
> 
> Beta: Thanks to jelazakazone who was a sweetheart and looked it over.

She was nervous going in. It was ridiculous. She hadn’t done anything wrong. It had been the right call to tell Joyce the truth or at least part of it. The tumour wasn’t shrinking and Emily knew that 9 times out of 10 this meant that the patient would die. That she hadn’t mentioned. But it had hung in the air, an untold result of the fact that the cancer didn’t respond to the treatment at all.

She stood in front of the door and breathed in and out. Why was she so nervous? Why did she feel so incredibly guilty? She closed her eyes and immediately the image of Micah came back to her mind. How hurt he had looked, how pained, and she was the cause…

No, she wasn’t the cause, the damn cancer was! But instead of helping him, instead of relieving his pain, she had added to it. It was the last thing she had wanted.

She couldn’t forget the sadness in his eyes. There on the roof, he was so close to losing it that she just wanted to hug him, hold him and make everything better, but he still was her superior… Instead she had taken his hand, trying to convey positive feelings through a simple touch. He had clasped her fingers in a desperate attempt to gain control.

It had lasted an eternity – or at least that was how it had felt. In reality it might only have been half an hour. They had stood on the roof of the hospital and said nothing. In silence Micah had battled with himself and his feelings, the whole time clutching her hand like a lifeline. She had been right next to him, willing to be his anchor for as long as he needed.

A cold wind had blown and she had shivered. It had gotten cold outside. The small trembles of her body had seemed to distract him, because he had turned towards her.

“It’s getting cold,” he had said, a simple statement. “Let’s go inside.”

She had nodded quietly and felt how he pressed her hand for a second. A “thank you”, a “sorry”, a “goodbye”? She hadn’t known. But she had smiled at him reassuringly and his answering smile had been genuine.

“Come on,” he had said and held the door open so she could go inside.

Going inside was what she was fighting with right now as well. She knew she couldn’t avoid it and she also knew she hadn’t done anything wrong. But the guilt was still there. She sighed. No time like the present. With a fluid motion her hand pushed against the door and opened it.

“Joyce,” she began but stopped mid track. The picture she saw was completely unexpected. Joyce lay in bed, her arms wrapped tightly around her son. Micah was beside her, his face red from crying, fallen into an exhausted sleep.

Joyce smiled, her index finger lightly pressed against her lips.

‘Hush,’ she gestured and Emily nodded in understanding. The sight of Micah like that broke Emily’s heart. Joyce’s eyes wandered back to her son and with the love of a mother she caressed his hair.

Emily waved her silent goodbye and left. She had witnessed a scene that wasn’t meant for her eyes and she didn’t want to intrude further. Instead she stood in front of the closed door, feeling for Micah and his mom. For a moment she wasn’t sure what to do, then she straightened her back. She might not have been able to make Joyce’s cancer go away, and she couldn’t help Micah find a cure, but she could guard his sleep. She could give him this little moment of peace in the arms of his mom. Nobody would disturb these two for the next few hours; she would make sure of it.


End file.
